From Villafranca Montes de Oca to Burgos, Camino Frances Stage no. 11

Basic Information

• Starting Point: Villafranca Montes de Oca, Spain – A small village with roughly 120 inhabitants, a grocery store, restaurant, pilgrim albergue, and nice view of Montes de Oca mountain range. Apart from the albergue you will find a few private accommodation options in the village.
• Ending Point: Burgos, Spain – The magnificent cathedral city and unofficial capital of the Camino Frances, filled with Gothic architecture and vibrant plazas. With roughly 180,000 inhabitants, you will find any kind of shop or service in town. You also have to count with urban entrance and exit from the city, something pilgrims generally dislike (road walking, lot of cars, etc), but we cannot avoid it with any big city on the camino.
• Availability of an alternative route: Things get a bit complicated here. Since many pilgrims disliked a lot the entrance to Burgos (along industrial complexes, busy road full with cars, etc), several different paths have emerged, with various degree of way-marking. Basically we can identify three main routes, and I mapped each one for you:
  • The variant over Atapuerca and Orbaneja, which was once an alternative way, but now it is considered a main one. You can see the route here: map.
  • The once traditional way, following the national road N120 for long stretches, which now less and less pilgrims take, and I do not recommend it. Anyway, you can see the map here: map.
  • Some people follow the cycling route leading to Burgos in the later parts of the stage, to avoid traffic and crowds. Notice that while the first two ways are almost identical in length, following the cycling way you add three extra kilometers to your walk… You can see the map here: map.
• Distance:
  • Recommended route and now also considered official camino: 37 km (Download GPS here).
  • Alternative route following N120 road: 37 km (Download GPS here).
  • Variant following the cycling route in later stages: 40 km (download GPS here)
• Elevation Difference: +405 m ascent, -495 m descent, for the main route.
• Difficulty Score: 4/5 – Challenging especially due to length,
• Beauty Score: 3/5 – The first 30% can easily get 5/5, with nice mountains around you. However, the other part and especially the last stretch is 1/5, with the industrial entrance to Burgos…
• Terrain/Asphalt Walking Ratio: 65% trails, 35% asphalt (changes a bit depending on the route you take)
• Next stage: Camino Frances Stage no. 12, Burgos – Hornillos del Camino.
• Previous stage: Camino Frances, Stage no. 10, Granon – Villafranca Montes de Oca.

Elevation profile for the routes

– Official camino, notice the step section at the beginning, and one more steep hill awaiting you around km 20 of today’s walk.

– Alternative route following the national road N120. As you can notice, you avoid the second climb following the alternative route (the ‘mountain’ crossing before the plato of Burgos).

– Variant following the cycling way, the flattest from the three, though the first 15 km are identical with the road N120 variant.

Advanced Info About the Stage

• Trail Marking: Big cities are always tricky on the camino. Not only the entrance and exit, but also all alternative ways pilgrims marked (or tried to mark) in good faith. If you simply follow yellow arrows you will eventually reach Burgos, but the question is how pleasant your route will be… On this stage, it is better using some good mapping application (and check regularly whether you’re on the way you want to follow), or following the GPS files we provide.
• Natural Highlights:
  • Montes de Oca Forest: The first 12 km of today’s walk are really nice, passing through old oak and pine forests with war memorials. It is the last big forested area you’ll see on the Camino for a few days, so enjoy it while you can :).
  • Humedad de Fuentes Blancas: A bird watching area at the entrance of Burgos, very close to both camino variants. Location and review on Google maps here. You shouldn’t expect anything spectacular, but if you’re into bird watching and look for a bit of shade and peace in Burgos, this is your place.
• Historical & Cultural Highlights:
  • Monumento la Pedraja: A monument remembering 300 people who were killed here during Spanish civil war. Good place to reflect on how lucky we actually are, to walk the camino instead of having to fight and die for ideals and goals of some politicians or psychopaths. Right on the camino, location and reviews on Google maps here.
  • San Juan de Ortega Monastery: 12th century monastery with pilgrim connections and beautiful Romanesque architecture. Free entrance, open from 1pm to 8pm daily. Right on the camino, location and reviews on Google maps here.
  • The center of Burgos and especially the Burgos Cathedral: UNESCO World Heritage site and one of Spain’s most magnificent Gothic cathedrals, with the interior you won’t ever forget. 5 euro entrance fee (pilgrim price, make sure to bring the credential with you), audio guides available (they have their own app, you can just download it and listen while walking inside). The cathedral can be quite crowded at times, but it is worth a long visit nevertheless. Location and reviews on Google maps here.
  • Local Cuisine: You can try Burgos specialties like morcilla (blood sausage), olla podrida (meat stew), and the local cheese called Queso de Burgos. Burgos is a big city, so you’ll find also any kind of international cuisine here, including four Michelin restaurants, should you look for a rare treat on your camino ;). If you do so, make sure to invite some fellow pilgrims to join you.
• Camping/Bivouac Options on the Stage: There is one organized camping on today’s stage,directly in Burgos, called Camping Fuentes Blancas. Location and reviews on Google maps here. Prices change during the season, but one person with a tent can typically camp there for roughly 15 euro/night. They have everything on site: restaurant, supermarket, swimming pool, library. Close to the town center, and a good location overall. Dogs are allowed.  When it comes to wild-camping, except of the first 10 km the stage isn’t really fitting for it. While there are some parks and green spaces in Burgos, I do not recommend trying to camp or bivouac there. Just too busy, strange characters at night, and local police doesn’t like it too. With such a setup it is almost impossible to have at least a decent sleep.
• Dog-Friendly Score: 2/5. The beginning is good for dogs, and the very end is decent, should you follow the river variant in the city of Burgos. But the middle section is hard with no shade and little water, and strong sun almost always above year head. What’s more, the hostels in Burgos aren’t dog friendly, and you have to opt for one of the hotels instead, for example this one. The sections ahead are even worse for dogs. If you do the camino with a dog anytime between April and October, you may consider taking public transport all the way to Leon or even to Astorga, resuming your walk only there, when conditions become much better for your beloved companion again.
• Special Remarks: This is one of the longest stages – and you can definitely consider stopping in San Juan de Ortega or in Atapuerca, or even planning your days differently. Another alternative is taking a day off in Burgos. In such a case, you’ll recover from the long walk the next day.

My picks for accommodation on this stage

1. Albergue INpulse Atapuerca, Atapuerca (km 18.5). A nice place with well-equipped kitchen, communal dinner (15 euro), and a friendly host. They accept dogs too. 13 beds in three dorms, plus some private rooms. 18 euro/night, dinner and breakfast extra. Excellent reviews on all platforms, and a good place to stay if you decide to break the stage to Burgos into two parts. Check-in from 1pm, you can make a reservation on the following phone number: +34 650 148 192. Location and reviews on Google maps here.
2. Albergue de peregrinos Casa del Cubo y de los Lerma, Burgos (km 37): Centraly located near the cathedral, modern and clean, with 120 beds located in various spaces in the building. Open all year long, check-in from noon. 10 euro/night. While they have 120 beds and the place gets full in main season, they always save a few beds for people who walk from distance, typically over 30 kilometers. Don’t get discouraged if they say at the beginning the place is full. Show them your pilgrim passport with the last stamp from Villafranca and they may magically find a bed for you ;). Location and reviews on Google maps here.

Pictures from the stage

– The beautiful stretch after Villafranca Montes de Oca at the beginning of today’s stage, early morning.
– Routes can get pretty muddy in rainy weather here, which was also our “destiny” while walking this stage.
– Enjoying the vibrant green while I still can…

– One of the small settlements on today’s way, I do not remember which one it was…
– Still quite green, but one can feel the change in the air already.
– More dry……and even drier. These passages are hard with strong sun. Make sure to either start early or break the stage in two parts to avoid being here in the afternoon.
– The cathedral of Burgos, UNESCO World Heritage. Seeing it in front of you, you’ll probably agree the long walk was definitely worth it…

Few tips at the end

• Do some planning ahead. Burgos is considered by many the most beautiful big city on the entire Camino Frances. But the entrance to town is super tiring, there’s almost no shade during the 2nd half of the stage, and overall one may enter the town exhausted, and not enjoy it at all. Do some planning, including the option of an extra day off, and carefully consider whether you want to walk this stage in one long stretch, or actually plan it differently. If you want to walk the stage as suggested here, I recommend you starting walking before 6am, or even at 5:30am.

Next/Previous Stage

• Next stage: Camino Frances Stage no. 12, Burgos – Hornillos del Camino.
• Previous stage: Camino Frances, Stage no. 10, Granon – Villafranca Montes de Oca.